10-Year Backtest: Buy and Hold AMD (Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.)

This analysis evaluates a buy-and-hold strategy over the past 10 years, providing a historical perspective on AMD's performance from 2015-07-06 to 2025-07-03.

Note: This simulation uses adjusted close prices, meaning all historical prices have been retroactively adjusted for splits and dividends. To achieve similar results in practice, you would need to reinvest all dividends automatically as they are paid.

Performance Overview

Starting with an initial capital of $10,000.00, we purchased shares of AMD on 2015-07-06, at a price of $2.47 per share (adjusted for splits and dividends). No trading, no adjustments — just a simple buy-and-hold approach.

We held the position continuously through every market twist and turn, never selling. As of 2025-07-03, the price of AMD had risen to $137.91. While we didn't sell, we can still assess the performance by calculating the current value of the investment: $558,340.09 — a total gain of 5,483.40%.

This translates into an annualized return of 49.56% over the entire period. The return is outstanding and far exceeds typical market returns. Such performance usually reflects an unusually favorable period or a high-risk, high-reward asset.

Drawdown and Risk

The maximum drawdown recorded during this period was 65.45%. This drawdown began after a peak price of $161.91 on 2021-11-29, and reached its lowest point on 2022-10-14 when the price fell to $55.94. The drawdown lasted for 319 days.

The drawdown was substantial, though not uncommon for long-term equity strategies that span full market cycles. This level suggests exposure to significant corrections or crashes. The maximum drawdown lasted over six months, suggesting a sustained downturn or persistent volatility. These periods can shake investor confidence and demand discipline.

The Calmar Ratio — annualized return divided by maximum drawdown — was 0.76, reflecting the tradeoff between return and volatility.

The Calmar Ratio is very strong — significantly better than most long-term investment strategies, indicating efficient risk management.